“Dave Smeds takes a turbulent mother/daughter relationship to a wryly outrageous extreme in ‘Suicidal Tendencies,’ set in a future where death is not the end, and murder (or suicide) may only be an attention-getting device.”
—Locus

“Dave Smeds flawlessly hits every beat in his short story, ‘Fearless.’ Opening with a virtual reality karate tournament…the story develops as a respectful exploration of the true soul of karate and the benefits that true mastery can bestow. Of all the stories in the anthology, this one most clearly explores the theme and develops it.”
—Tangent

“‘A Wife of Acorn, Leaf, and Rain’ by Dave Smeds is one of my favorites, a poignant story about a man who taps into Faerie to find closure with his all-too-mortal wife.”
—Folk Tales

“Smeds shoots for black comedy, vim, and bite. He succeeds.”
—SF Age

“This fine collection [is] one of the highlights of the century’s small press offerings.”
—Paul Di Filippo

Dave Smeds is the Nebula Award-nominated author of six novels, including The Sorcery Within and The Schemes of Dragons. His short fiction has appeared in many venues, such as The Magazine of Fantasy & Science Fiction, Asimov’s Science Fiction, and Realms of Fantasy, as well in anthologies such as Full Spectrum, Best New Horror, and the Sword & Sorceress series. Smeds has been a screenplay writer, typesetter, commercial artist, and karate instructor.

“Dave Smeds is a writer willing to tackle big topics, and he’s got the skills and ambition to do them justice.”
—Scifi.com